By Dr Sharifullah Dorani* ‘[M]assive U.S. contracts to some of Kabul’s shadiest business operators undermined the very anti-corruption efforts designed to win over the Afghan people.’[1] President Obama Introduction In June, 2011, President Barack Obama made the decision to withdraw the 30,000 US troops by the end of 2012, and the rest by 2014.…

By Dr Sharifullah Dorani* Introduction In June, 2011, President Barack Obama made the decision to withdraw the 30,000 US troops by the end of 2012, and the rest by 2014. The decision, in effect, marked the beginning of the end of the US’s longest war, the Afghanistan War, highlighting a major  turning point in…

By Dr Sharifullah Dorani* ‘Depending on who you talked to, our mission in Afghanistan was either narrow (wiping out al-Qaeda) or broad (transforming the country into a modern, democratic state that would be aligned with the West)…my first priority was to make sure our agencies…were aligned around a clearly defined mission and a coordinated…

By Dr Sharifullah Dorani* ‘It’s fair to say, then, that by the third or fourth go-around of Power-Points slides, battlefield maps, and balky video feeds, along with the ever-present fluorescent lighting, bad coffee, and stale air, everyone was sick of Afghanistan, sick of meetings, and sick of one another.’[1]  President Obama on the decision-making…

By Dr Sharifullah Dorani* ‘Did I not make myself clear about how I wanted time to evaluate McChrystal’s assessment? Or does your building just have a basic lack of respect for me?… Is it because I’m young and didn’t serve in the military? Is it because they [the military leaders] don’t like my politics…?’[1]…

By Dr Sharifullah Dorani* The role of  the military in foreign policymaking in  the Obama Administration Introduction The decision to escalate the war in Afghanistan under the Obama administration was the result of a highly contentious and intricate policymaking process. Within this process, a clear division emerged between five distinct groups: the Vice-President, the…

By Dr Sharifullah Dorani* ‘Tension between the White House staffers and the Pentagon got worse, with NSC staff feeling stonewalled when it came to getting information in a timely fashion and Gates quietly fuming over what he considered to be the NSC’s constant micromanagement. The bad blood even spilled over into relationships within departments.’…

By Dr Sharifullah Dorani* Introduction  President Barack Obama’s policymaking team for the decision to surge (and, in most cases, for the decision to withdraw) US troops in Afghanistan could be divided into five: the Vice-President, ‘the inner circle’, ‘the outsiders’, the General David Petraeus camp, and the President himself. Each, and its influence on…